The incident began with an accident.
It really was just an accident, Ayakoji Chiyoko could confirm that much. It wasn't orchestrated by anyone, and it certainly wasn't intentional.
She had entered the courtyard chasing a cat.
The plump, orange stray cat had snatched her handkerchief while she was washing her hands—that had been a gift from her stepmother, and Ayakoji Chiyoko didn't want to lose it just like that.
When she caught the cat in the tree in the courtyard, she just happened to see Sakata Asahi, and Kagura Hikaru who had followed him there.
She decided to eavesdrop till the end after hearing the words from behind the tree, "Chiyoko used to attend the same elementary school as us, Yoshou Elementary School."
Kagura Hikaru, this person, should never have been associated with the phrase 'Yoshou Elementary School.'
In Ayakoji Chiyoko's memory, he was an unrelated character.
But this understanding was wrong.